The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a concentric motor power generation and drive system.
In many vehicles and, in particular, hybrid vehicles, power transmission systems are used for converting mechanical energy generated in an engine into electrical energy that can either be stored or converted back to mechanical energy that can be employed for driving purposes. These power transmission systems often include a generator rotor, which is driven to rotate by a drive shaft that is rotatably coupled to an engine, and a generator stator, which converts the rotor rotation into electrical energy. This electrical energy is either stored by a battery or transmitted to a drive stator, which induces rotation of a drive rotor that is, in turn, coupled to, for example, vehicle wheels.
Typically, in conventional power transmission systems, the generator elements and the drive elements are not mounted together and may be, in fact, disposed at different parts of a particular vehicle. Thus, there is a need to separately mount these features in such a vehicle in relatively heavy and complex arrangements. This leads to the vehicle itself being relatively heavy and less fuel economical than it otherwise could be.